Page 81 of Forgotten Path

He kept his eyes shut. “Craig and Judy are saying goodbye in the nursery. I’m finding mydrishti.”

“I didn’t realize you’d lost it.”

He opened his eyes and laughed.

She nudged him with her shoulder. “So, seriously, what’s adrishti?”

“It depends on the context. In yoga, thedrishtiis a focal point. If you’re doing a balancing posture, you pick a specific visual spot to focus on. It helps you stay steady.”

“But you’re not doing yoga.”

“No, I’m not. In a meditation practice, thedrishtiis an anchor for your attention. You can close your eyes like I did and sharpen your focus inward. Or you can soften your gaze and focus on something external.”

“So you were meditating?”

“I was grounding myself before we go see Fred.”

“There’s been a change of plans. Officer Green is out responding to a call.”

“Okay.”

“You going to be okay by yourself?”

He turned and painted her with a questioning look. “Yes, why wouldn’t I be?”

She smacked her lips together while she worked out how to phrase her response. “Do you still do thatahimsathing?”

“You mean right action—one of the eight practices of the Eightfold Noble Path? Thatahimsathing?”

“Is that the one where you can’t kill a spider or cold-cock someone who’s threatening you with a weapon?”

“That’s the one,” he confirmed with a wry smile.

“Bodhi, this is serious.”

He smoothed his smile into a serious expression. “I know, Felicia. That’s why you wanted to send the greenest officer on the Oyster Point police force along to babysit us.”

She raised her hands in a ‘don’t blame me’ gesture. “It was a skeleton crew to begin with, and now with three separate actions going down at once, we’re stretched pretty thin.”

“I’m just giving you a hard time. We’ll be fine.”

“Which of the eight noble paths is giving your friends crap?”

“Oh, that’s the ninth one. I made it especially for you.”

He nudged her back with his shoulder, and she smiled, but her smile faded immediately. “I’m worried about sending you out there unarmed.”

“I’m armed with a spirit of non-attachment.”

“Now you’re just being weird,” she told him.

Before he could respond, the nursery room door opened. Craig and Judith Lowell walked out. His eyes were red and wet. Hers were dry. She must’ve had an excellentdrishtibecause she stared straight ahead as she walked over to a table where a gaggle of formidable older women sat. As she reached them, the nosy postal worker wrapped her in a hug.

Felicia shifted her attention to Craig. “Ready?”

He didn’t have a fraction of Brianna’s bravado. He looked straight at Felicia and said, “Hell, no. But let’s get this over with.”

She clapped Craig on the shoulder. “You heard the man, Bodhi. Time to get this show on the road.”